Shadow War: Scion of House Arc
by Lord Marshal
Summary: In the shadows, a war rages. Not only over pitiful concepts of individualism, but existence itself. The Arc family, long champions of the people, have been attacked, one of their own cruelly taken away. They must now enter this faction war and discover who wishes them dead. Jaune Arc travels to infiltrate Beacon and Vale, the latest battleground of these factions, to get answers.


**Authors note: I didn't think I would ever write a fic for the RWBY series, but I have a love of RWBY fan fiction, especially those with Jaune as a character. However every story I have read of decent quality has always had something missing, a certain aspect, or pairing. So I have decided to write my own.**

 **This will largely follow the events of the series, however it will have my own tale alongside it, alongside factions and OCs not seen in the original story so it will be slightly AU. The tone of the story shall also be darker, they are, after all, in a world filled with Monsters hell bent on eating every human alive, lets take off the kids wheels. The pairing as you no doubt noticed is Jaune x Blake. However I will probably put up a poll if anyone wants to add a third person to that pairing, and if people vote for that, then I will put up another poll for who people want.**

 **However I'm still undecided if I want a third person at all as I generally hate 'Harems' as they are completely unrealistic. I think even people who love Harem stories can admit that. Adding another person is pushing it a little, but its been known to happen.**

 **Please review and tell me what you think, it would mean a lot. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Prologue**

" _Siblings: children of the same parents, each of whom is perfectly normal until they get together."_

-Sam Levenson

* * *

A Hawks cry pierced the quiet of the landscape and it's call bounced off the snowy mountains, reverberating through the valley which the mountains protected. Fir trees swayed gently in the breeze as a gently gurgling river ran through the forest, coming from a waterfall and lake at the very heart of the vale. And through all of this, children's laughter could be heard, a boy and a girl as they ran in-between the trunks. A boy with bright blonde hair, and a girl with dark purple.

Jaune Arc was a happy boy. Only son of Maric and Fiona Arc, he was outnumbered by his eight sisters, a fact that they repeatedly used to their advantage against poor Jaune. His parents had been eager to have a boy and so Jaune had been born after the eight attempt. Technically however he was not the youngest. His twin sister, Gwendolyn, the one currently giggling madly as she ran away, shared that honour with him. His mother and father were the only ones who knew which was born first, knowledge they refused to share much to Gwendolyn's and Jaune's chagrin, Jaune had always been quietly grateful though. His life was hard enough with the combined teasing of eight sisters, he didn't need being the baby of the family on top of that. Much better to share that burden with Gwen. Not that it stopped the twins arguing about who was youngest. Which brings us back to the two children running through the forest.

"Get back here Gwen! I'll get you for this!" Jaune shouted as he scaled the fallen tree Gwen had effortlessly jumped over a moment before. She simply laughed.

"What is it brother? Paint weighing you down? You look pretty in purple!" She giggled as she sprinted in to a clearing. Jaune narrowed his eyes, both at her insult and because the paint was getting in to his eyes. He ran in to the clearing after her and glanced around as he recognized where his sister mad escape had taken them. Father had attached a rope swing to the large tree in the centre, somewhere all the Arc children had played as they grew up.

A plan entered Jaune's mind and he grinned. Crazy and liable not to work but those were his speciality. As his sister ran past the swing, ignoring it totally, he jumped on to it and used its forwards momentum to leap high and towards his sister. Quickly looking behind her at the commotion, he saw her eyes widen at the sight of him flying towards her. They collided heavily and rolled in the grass, grappling with each other. Using his superior strength he pinned her to the floor and glanced her over, worrying he had hurt her. His fears were unfounded however as she gave a fresh burst of wriggling to escape, only to find it useless. She stopped with a huff, but still had that insufferable grin on her face. Jaune narrowed his eyes.

 _'Won't be grinning in a minute'_

"Find this funny do you? Well how about I let you in on the joke" he said as he rolled them over and started to rub as much of his paint covered body on her as possible, ignoring her squealing and protests. Finishing his well earned revenge he stood up and smirked down at her now fuming, paint covered face. They stared at each other for a moment before Gwen's face broke out in to a smile and the duo started to giggle then laugh. Jaune plopped himself down next to his sister as they looked over the valley from their spot. His heart slowly calmed its rapid pounding from the chase as he looked at the beautiful sight. He stretched his eyes skywards and watched as a Hawk flew overhead.

"You know, with all that purple paint, you definitely look more like my brother now Jaune." She smiled as she started scraping paint out of her purple hair, knowing which buttons to press as Jaune scowled. Gwen's constant attempts to 'pretty him up' annoyed him to no end. Even more so when every one of his sisters did it.

"So have you given it any more thought?"

Jaune groaned as he immediately knew what she was talking about, turning on his side to face her expectant face.

"I don't know Gwen, I kinda like the music lessons with Dad." Disappointment flashed over her face, but it was gone in an instant, She jumped up and struck a pose, seemingly undeterred.

"But think about it! Gwendolyn and Jaune Arc, legendary hunter pair! It would be so cool. And all you want is play a silly guitar." Annoyance flared in Jaune, his guitar wasn't silly! And it was something he was actually really good at. At least, that was what Dad told him.

"Shut up! Guitars are cool as well! But I'm just not sure I want to be a hunter."

The twins glared at each other for a moment, neither wanting to give up. Then his sister sat down, and her long purple hair formed a curtain around her face, He started to hear quiet sniffles from her and Jaune's heart tore, he hated making his sister unhappy. Scooting over to her he wrapped his arms around her, resting his head in her hair, uncaring of the paint covering them. After a few seconds of trying to petulantly ignore him, his sister returned the gesture, burying her head in his shoulder.

"I just...I don't want to be separated from you. I want to stay with you and do everything together." Jaune's already torn heart, ripped entirely. He knew his sister could cry some crocodile tears, to get her way but this wasn't such a time. He knew her too well.

Jaune held her as she calmed down "I never said that I don't want to be a hunter, just...it might be something I don't want to do at the moment." She looked up at him.

"But you remember what mum said? You have to start young, if you don't start now you'll be too far behind." Jaune sighed at the truth of her words. Hunters started young, to condition their bodies for the hard life ahead of them, not to mention the decade spent at hunters schools, where it was learn fast or go home. If he didn't decide in the next year at the most, then he would be severely disadvantaged if he could pass at all.

He and his Sister had grown up listening to the stories their parents told them, incredible tales of fighting Grimm, saving friends, standing up to tyranny and the feats that the Arc family had achieved. The tales of his Great Grandfather, the white knight, a hero of the Great War was his personal favourite. A much more recent tale, that of the Francesca Falco, was his sisters. The Faunus Huntress who was legendary as the first one to prove the existence of the Ancient Grimm, and slay one, as it was in the course of its plot to destroy Vacuo.

These tales excited him as much as they did Gwen. But to be a hunter, you would have to be completely dedicated, a decision to become one would decide the rest of his life. It was a hard decision for an eight year old who was torn between so many paths of life. He looked away.

"I...I'll think about it"

She smiled up at him, and to Jaune it was like the sun emerging on a rainy day. Drying her eyes she jumped up out of their embrace and held her hand out to pick him up. Taking it, he used his weight to pull her down as he got up and ignored her squeak as he ran in to the clearing laughing. Best to distract her so she didn't think on it too much. He tried to ignore the many audible threats made to his life as she got up.

He stretched out his arm observing as the Hawk that had been circling above swooped down, flaring its wings at the last moment and landing on his arm. It quickly scooted up to his shoulder, and gave him a nip on his ear. It had hurt in the early days, but he knew now that it was to show affection. He stroked it, as Gwen walked over frowning.

"If you didn't have her tracking me, I would have got away with it" The Hawk's head turned and it gave her an imperious glare. The two had never got along well, much to Jaune's bemusement.

"You're just jealous, it's not Nyx's fault you were stomping through the forest like a blind Deathstalker" Jaune countered, as he continued to stroke the Jet black bird, Gwen wasn't the only one who knew the others sensitive spots, he saw he'd hit true as her frown deepened. His sister, who held none of his doubts about the hunter profession and dearly wished to be a huntress, and had been working on her agility with their mother. Her success at evading him through the forest showed her progress. He'd only managed to keep up due to Nyx following her from above, combined with knowing the valley even better than she did.

Before the purple haired girl could give a reply they were interrupted.

"Jaune! Gwen! Where are you? Dinners nearly ready!" a voice rang out in the distance. Gwen opened her mouth to shout a reply, only to close it again as Jaune shot forward.

"Race you!" Jaune shouted as he sprinted in the direction of the voice. Gwen was left open mouthed as he threw his arm forward and Nyx shot in to the air with an eager cry. She growled.

"You're on!" She quickly shot after her brother and the twins disappeared in to the forest.

* * *

The Arc family home sat on a small plateau, at the foot of the valley's largest mountain. More of a mansion than a house, partly out of necessity due to the size of the large Arc family but also due to all of it being built from scratch by Maric Arc. The deserted landscape gave him plenty of space and material to expand until it went from a small house to a large manor, with many outer buildings, built to satisfy the Arc families many needs and interests. Jaune knew his Father took a lot of pride in the home he had built for his family over sixteen years.

The twins slid to a stop at the gate, the unofficial stop line and Gwen gave a victory pump. She had somehow managed to pull ahead half way by jumping the slippy stones at the river rather than taking the bridge. He caught his breath as he finally caught up.

"I win again" she gloated, striking a victorious pose. Jaune was about to object when he looked past Gwen and smiled.

"No, we both lost"

"Nu uh, I made it here first, I clearly won!" Jaune pointed behind her and she looked over her shoulder.

Nyx sat on the post, preening herself. She looked up as the twins attention turned to her, then returned to her grooming. Gwen huffed.

"She wasn't part of the race, so it doesn't count."

"You heard Dad, she's part of the family now, so she's eligible." Jaune grinned. The dawning of an epic squabble between the siblings was cut short by a new arrival.

"There you two are, mums goin- oh, for Monty's sake, you two can't stay out of trouble for a moment!". The twins looked over to see their ever responsible oldest sister, Gloria, walking down the path shaking her head in what could either be exasperation or amusement, Jaune couldn't tell.

"She/he did it." They both accused at the same time, pointing at one another, then glaring at one another.

"And I'm ending it" Gloria declared. She grabbed both by their collar and hauled them in the direction of the outside baths. She was remarkably strong for a fourteen year old. A product of their Huntress training no doubt.

"Your dinner is nearly ready and you two are covered head to toe in purple paint. Mum won't be happy about you pranking Jaune again Gwen." She said, looking pointedly at her little sister. Gwen gave Gloria her most innocent look. Jaune could almost see the halo over her head.

"But it wasn't m-"

"Oh enough of that, you're not fooling anyone, why would Jaune cover himself in purple paint, your favourite colour?" Jaune smirked as Gwen spluttered. Feeling vindicated, Jaune wriggled out of his sisters grasp and entered the right side of the small building, the bathing area for he and his father, while his sister entered the left, the area was a natural hot spring, another reason for the Arc families current location in the valley. Without it cold showers would be far more likely.

Jaune listened through the wall separating the two wash areas as he cleaned himself.

"You won't tell mum will you"? He heard his sister ask with trepidation. Jaune couldn't help but sympathise. Their mother was a kind woman, but she could be scary sometimes. Despite his sisters prank, being the attention of Fiona Arc's ire wasn't a fate he would wish on anyone.

"Not this time I think, Jaune seems to have had his revenge anyway" Gloria replied with a laugh. Jaune heard a quiet huff. Ignoring the rest of the conversation Jaune started scrubbing furiously, cleaning the evidence from his body.

"Change of clothes outside the door for you Jaune, hurry up now, before I get in trouble as well."

Jaune quickly got out, dried himself and picked up the clothes when he saw the coast was clear. Thankfully his sisters had stopped replacing his clothes with stuff they considered 'cute', more so at their fathers insistence, quality clothes were not exactly in abundant supply. The nearest settlement alone, Easthaven, was a hundred miles away.

He walked out in his clean clothes, a simple t-shirt and shorts, fashion mattered little to a child. He found his sisters waiting, and they set off together.

"Oh Jaune" Gloria sighed as she grabbed his hair and started messing with as they walked. Jaune scowled as she took the simple pony tail he had it in and started to braid part of his hair into a single plait, while the rest hung loose. She slapped his hand away gently as he tried to stop her attempts to braid his hair.

He had successfully resisted there many attempts at smothering him, mostly with his fathers assistance. But he could never stop his sisters with his hair, mostly because his mother had loved it as well. And nobody seemed capable of arguing with her, especially not his dad

"It's my hair, I can do with it what I want" His sister simple smiled.

"But you look so cute like this. And all the girls will love it when you grow up."

"What does it matter what some stupid girls like?" Jaune asked grumpily. Gloria simple giggled and looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"You'll care about it when your older" she said mysteriously. Despite his confusion Jaune dismissed her words as Gloria finished her work and the thee siblings stepped in to the house, the smell of dinner being sufficient enough to distract him.

Arrayed before them was his entire family, it seemed they had arrived just as dinner was being served. Most of the meal was already out on table, vegetables, roast potatoes, breads, sausages and sauces and more besides. The only space left on the table, already groaning under the weight of all the food, was for the centrepiece, and with his mothers skill at cooking, it would no doubt be glorious.

The three sat down in their seats as they waited for the rest of dinner to arrive. Jaune looked around at his family. His father sat at one end of the table, Maric Arc, like all men of the Arc family including Jaune, was tall and broad shouldered. His blonde hair was a darker shade than his sons, and he had a trimmed beard. His eyes twinkled as they looked at his gathered family. A Hunter of Grim he was, by his own admission, more a scientist and engineer than a hunter. He made up in his average skill as a hunter and manipulator of Aura with his incredible inventions, manipulating technology and dust with a skill few others could match. At least that was what his Mother told him. His father rarely talked of his life before making the valley his home. He knew that he possessed a workshop where he did his tinkering but had never been allowed in there.

And then down in order was Gloria, Ginny, Guinevere, Grace, Gabrielle, Gladys, Gillian, Gwendolyn, then him. He had once asked his mum why all of his sisters were all named with the letter G, but she had blushed and refused to tell him. His father had later whispered to him she had lost a drunken bet with a friend at Beacon, and an Arc always kept a promise, even one who adopted the name.

Around him sat his sisters as they chatted, and he simply watched. It was a strange thing, having such a large loving family, but feeling isolated at the same time. His sisters loved him to bits but to talk was to invite their attention and subsequent teasing, so he had become a quiet child, which suited him fine. He had always preferred to watch and observe anyway. It was...lonely though. He'd always wished for a brother, someone his age he could play and talk with. Not to say that he disliked Gwen. He loved her dearly and she was all he could ask for in a twin, alongside being the one he was closest too in the family. But…he would have liked a brother all the same.

At that moment, his mother, Fiona Arc walked in with the last dish, a steaming turkey, and proudly placed it at the centre. Jaune's mother was a beautiful woman, tall, with long purple hair flowing down to her hips, you wouldn't believe that this woman was once one of the strongest huntresses of her generation, and likely still was. But she had given that life up when she had settled down with Maric, a hunter of some renown himself.

As his mother sat down and they tucked in to the delicious meal, the girls continued to chat, Gladys was talking to her father. She had taken after the man in the looks department, tall with her blonde hair in two buns. Jaune's couldn't hear very well over the clamour of the family talking, but it sounded like something about extracting power from dust more efficiently, she had taken an interest in engineering and science after sneaking into father's workshop. She was the little family genius, much to her parents pride at being so intelligent and inquisitive at such a young age. His Father always made time to her answer her questions.

Grace was simply looking at her lap occasionally taking bites of her food. Like Gladys, she was also tall, but had inherited her mothers purple hair, though it was a darker shade, almost black. Jaune saw a faint light playing upon her face he knew she was once again on her pad. No doubt looking at the latest news, fashions, trends and generally anything she could her hands on from the Kingdoms, it was fairly well known in the family she was slightly obsessed with going there. A fact that had caused some tension between her and their parents though Jaune had no idea why, after all why couldn't she go? It's not like they were incapable of getting to the Kingdoms safely, his mother and father had done it several times.

Speaking of the Arc family matriarch, he was surprised that his mum hadn't caught his sister on her pad at the table yet. She hated it. Glancing over he saw her distracted as Gloria and Gabrielle were talking quietly with his mother, no doubt once again about their Huntress training. Gloria was virtually a carbon copy of their mother, both physically and mentally, caring, loving, responsible, scary when angry.

Gabrielle on the other hand had dyed parts of her hair orange, and had for as long as Jaune could remember, creating a canopy of purple and orange tresses. She, like Jaune, was quiet, listening attentively. The two of them had something of an understanding, both were quiet, unlike their boisterous family, both loved books, often exchanging volumes, though Jaune honestly never got into the sappy 'romances' she loved, they were really icky.

Guinevere and Ginny, the other pair of twins in the family were giggling together and whispering. They had taken it upon themselves to inject a little laughter into the Arc family life, becoming resident pranksters, and much to his horror, had taken Gwen under their wing. They were the shortest of the family, much to their chagrin and their pixie cut hair was a light purple, almost pink.

Finally, Gillian was the one Jaune was closest too in the family, after Gwen and his father. She was of average height, with dirty blonde hair. It was with her that he explored the valley when his Father and sister were busy, and they had spent many a day exploring the vale. It was a constant argument between her and their parents to take her boots off when inside, after coming back from her most recent muddy day out.

"Oh, is ickle Jauney poo trying to dye his hair?" Ginny suddenly teased. Knowing immediately what she meant, Jaune's hand shot to his hair and felt it. There. Some flakes of paint he had missed. All of his sisters eyes were suddenly drawn to him, he could already see their eyes lighting up. Glancing at the twin devils he didn't fail to notice the evil grins.

 _'Looks like I know who gave Gwen that paint can'_

It was fortunate that it was twins that had been the first ones to notice, she was the only one he currently had ammunition against.

 _'Time to get the attention off me. Sorry Ginny, you brought this on yourself'_

"You may not want to use the washer today. I saw Ginny and Guinevere replacing the cleaner" Jaune said nonchalantly. He didn't look up from his food as he cut a crisp roast potato. He knew the one he wanted to hear had ears like a bat.

"That's why my blouse came out orange. It's ruined!" Grace shouted, looking up from the pad in her lap.

 _'Huh. Not the one I was expecting but looks like she does listen after all'_

"Nope, we improved it!" the duo replied simultaneously. Grace's face went red and the start of an argument looked near.

"Girls! Enough! Not at the dinner table." Their mother quickly interjected firmly, restoring order with a pre-emptive strike. She looked to the guilty party. "I'll be talking to you two later." The twin terrors squirmed in their seats. That immediately ended all argument. He looked at his father out of the corner of his eyes. Maric gave a subtle wink at his son who half smiled back.

The rest of the meal went smoothly, as smoothly as a meal could with the Arc family anyhow. As the plates were being cleared, his father stood up.

"Jaune, why don't you put on something warm and step outside, I've something to show you." Jaune smiled.

"Sure"

As he stood up and left the living room to get his shoes and coat he heard his mother call out behind him.

"Not you Gwen"

"Bu-"

"No buts, your dad just wants some Father-son time with Jaune, you're helping with the dishes young lady."

"Aww."

Jaune smiled.

 _'I'll be back soon Gwen'_

* * *

He found his father outside, holding a small package and two heavy backpacks looking down in to the forest below.

 _'Why_ _does he have two backp_ _…'_ Realization, then excitement filled Jaune

"Are we going camping!?" His dad turned around with a smile.

"That we are! Up to the waterfall."

Jaune looked down at himself in confusion.

"But I haven't got anything ready"

"Luckily I have, everything is in the backpack for you. And you're already dressed for it."

"Sweet! What are we waiting for then?" Jaune scooped the backpack closest to him on to his back and promptly collapsed under its weight into the dirt. Booming laughter echoed above him as his Father picked up the pack with one hand and his son with the other.

"Yours is there" Maric chortled to the blushing boy, pointing to the second backpack.

Trying to ignore his embarrassment, Jaune shouldered the smaller backpack. It was smaller but still heavy, not that he minded, eager as he was.

The two Arc males set off towards the heart of the vale, at a steady pace. It wasn't dark yet, not for a good few hours, which would be all that it would take to get to the waterfall. It wasn't a punishing walk in itself, but the valley curved upwards towards its centre. Add the heavy backpack on top of that and Jaune was soon huffing and puffing, he neither complained or asked for a break however. It was nice to be out with his father again and he didn't want to appear weak. Being in a family of eight children made vying for their parents attention a daily competition.

As they walked, Jaune's father pointed out different things around the valley, species of life, both animals and planets, types of rocks. His father was literate at everything it seemed, not merely engineering. Jaune soaked it all up. He loved learning new things, maybe not to the extent Gladys, but when you are tucked away so far from civilisation, you had to occupy yourself with something. Add to that his eight sisters relentless teasing and attention on top of that, and Jaune found himself taking solace in books and learning, in between being dragged away by Gwen or Gillian. Books don't mother you or try to braid your hair.

As they walked, his Dad told him about his days in his old hunter school, Beacon, his old team, friends and professors. Apparently he had even been in the same team as the current Headmaster and Jaune's mother, though he didn't speak much of the fourth member, only muttering something about a 'Killjoy she-devil'. It certainly sounded like a nice place, a place he may even go one day if he decided to become a hunter. And it was right next to the city of Vale as well!

 _'It would be worth it_ _just for that_ _,'_ He thought _'Think about all the people I would see there!'_

More people than he had ever seen in his short life, being cooped up in the valley. Which brought him to the question of...why were they here in the first place? Why not with other humans in other cities or even frontier towns? He frowned, looking down as he walked. He loved his home, but their very presence here was a mystery now that he considered it.

 _'Why have I never thought about that before?'_

He resolved to ask his father when they reached the waterfall and made camp.

As they travelled further and further away from the Arc residence the lands grew wilder and they saw animals at an increased rate. They paused by a tree so Jaune could climb on his fathers shoulders and look at a group of baby chicks squawking to their absent parents for more food, though he didn't appreciate the comparison his Father made of them to his own children. The elder Arc also give him some pointers on how to read the ground, showing him how to spot disturbed grass, and different types of tracks. He wasn't sure why his Father was teaching him this, but it would no doubt be a useful skill in the future so he listened diligently.

Further on, closer to the waterfall, they even caught sight of two Stags locking horns and fighting with fiercely. They watched the battle, crouched behind a great tree, which itself was gouged with jagged cuts from the stags horns, marking its territory, or so his Father told him as they watched. After a while, one stag gained a victory over the other, gouging his competitor in the haunch. The victorious stag swaggered off in to the forest whole the wounded one limped away, blood running freely. It was incredible to watch the two kings of the forest fight, he knew why they were fighting, his father had, after all, embarrassedly explained the bird and the bees to him when he had asked after witnessing a similar event of a different species. It was what happened after which prompted the questions...and the nightmares.

Something occurred to Jaune as they were once again walking, on the final leg of their journey.

"Dad? Animals don't have a language, so...how do they learn, or teach or know what to do?"

His Father looked down in a strange combination of pride and amusement.

"That is a very deep question Jaune, for your age" Jaune blushed slightly, but kept his fathers gaze.

"I'd still like to know" His father looked up, towards the nearing waterfall. The thunderous sound of water striking water was growing closer.

"A lot of animals learn patterns of behaviour from their parents. But many are abandoned after birth to grow on their own."

"That just raises more questions that it answers" Jaune grumbled, kicking a stone as he walked. His father smiled.

"The answer Jaune, is instincts, that is what teaches the animals what to avoid and welcome, humans have it also, evolved through a million years to guide you when you are unsure or hesitant. If there is a Beowulf that is about to strike your back, your mind tells you it isn't there. But your instincts scream that it is behind you. Or when your heart is unsure wherever you should kiss that girl or not but your instincts tell you to do it." At the last part Jaune's face visibly screwed up in disgust. Maric laughed.

"If it wasn't for that particular instinct, you wouldn't be here right now". He roared with laughter when Jaune started to making retching noises. Deciding that asking further in that direction would simply lead to knowledge far too horrific to hear, Jaune shut up.

A hawks cry sounded above Jaune and he and his Father looked up. Nyx gracefully soared through the skies above, keeping abreast of them. Deciding to play a game, Jaune looked around, and seeing the sparse pine forest next to him saw the prefect location. He looked up and putting his fingers to his mouth made a high pitched whistle, before throwing his hand into the air in a circular motion, the signal for Nyx to come to him, before sprinting into the forest with a laugh. The hawk above gave a challenging cry and gave chase, entering into a steep dive, at which point Jaune lost track of her as the forest canopy blocked his view.

Running as hard and as fast as his little legs could carry him, he ran through the forest in the direction of the opposite side, where the rough path curved around, the impromptu finish line. Hearing a swoosh of air and sensation of motion behind him, he threw himself to the ground as the Nyx dived through the space he had just occupied, claws extended. Quickly scrabbling to his feet he dodged between several trees before the bird could lunge for him. Seeing her prey elude her, Nyx, gave a cry and flew in to the forest where she became a blur of motion, dodging and diving between the tree trunks, before Jaune lost sight of her, the bird simply too fast to track.

He quickly began running again, rolling on the balls of his feet to reduce the noise from breaking twigs and keeping his profile low, though he knew it was largely useless with the Hawks strong senses. The light between the trunks was getting brighter, and he could see his father waiting on the path.

 _'How did he-'_ He ducked as Nyx came in on another dive for his head, the bird giving a frustrated cry as the prey once again dodged her. _'Never mind, no time to think now'_

Just as he was about to cross the forest boundary, Nyx burst from the canopy above, and seized Jaune's shoulders with a victorious screech, her sharp talons dug in, and though a shock it wasn't painful beyond several sharp pricks. He had after all, been used to it for years. He gave a groan of disappointment as Nyx moved from his shoulder to his backpack, digging her talons into the rucksack and flapping her wings vigorously as if to pull Jaune back into the forest to feast on her caught prey. He waved the bird off with a chuckle and the hawk once again flapped too and settled on his shoulder.

"Another victory for Nyx I see" His Father grinned as Jaune rejoined him on the path. Jaune rolled his eyes.

"Don't inflate her ego, it's big enough already." Nyx cuffed Jaune over the head with a wing and gave him what he assumed was the hawk version of a glare.

"I swear that bird is too smart for it's own good, and the bond between you two..." Jaune's father looked at Nyx. "I've seen trained birds at festivals and circuses before but what you two have is something else." Jaune rubbed the back of his head embarrassed.

"Well Nyx isn't just a trained bird. She's Nyx" Jaune said simply, as if that explained everything. Maric simply smiled. Nyx scooted up to his neck and to nip his ear, and then start to groom his blonde locks, tucking loose strands of hair behind his ear. He suffered her attentions, inwardly grumbling.

 _'Great, now it seems like females of all species that like to play with my hair.'_

Still, thinking about Nyx, the forest that they he had run through was near the downed tree where he had first met the loyal avian. She was just a chick, her mother dead and the nest was destroyed, though not even his parents could identify the cause beyond a freak accident caused by the weather. A great storm had raged the night before and the tree containing the nest had been brought down. They had simply wished for nature to take its course and leave the bird, but Jaune wouldn't have it, having been the one to find the chick which even then, was huddled in his tiny hands, squawking weakly and pecking at his chest for food. Eventually they had succumbed to frustration and not having the will to separate the chick from the bawling infant and had brought it home. All attempts to release it back into the wild failed, as it simply left only to reappear in his room a day later, even when they locked all the windows. Eventually they gave up, too fond of the stubborn avian to uselessly send it away any longer. Jaune and Nyx had been inseparable ever since, much to Gwen's chagrin.

They soon reached the waterfall. It was a place that Jaune considered the most beautiful in the valley. A waterfall that fell from a cliff a good few hundred metres up, into a small lake, which itself was surrounded by a meadow of wild flowers. A lone sakura tree sat in the meadow, swaying gently in the breeze. Dusk was beginning, and with the sun beginning to set, the wild flower field bathed in the orange colours of twilight made a very pretty picture.

The duo made their way to their usual camping spot, a patch of flattened grass near the tree, but not under it, as Jaune has learned from his Father on a previous trip. Lightning always struck the tallest object, though looking into the clear skies, there was a larger chance of being struck by lightning than it raining tonight. Nyx flapped her wings and flew from his shoulder too her favourite perch on the tree, a thin branch near the top, that gave her a birds eye view, pun intended, of the surrounding area.

Soon enough, just as it was getting dark, they had a fire roaring, the tent set up, and his Father had brought out the ingredients for smores, much to his delight. They talked more as they held the marshmallows over the fire and the elder Arc told Jaune about his Grandparents, and inevitably after that his great grandparents, more specifically, his great Grandfather and his deeds in the Great war. It surprised Jaune to learn that his family had once lived in a great manor in Vale and had had a seat on the council that ran the Kingdom. Yet another reason to ask why they were hidden away in the valley and not in Vale.

The two ate and finished their smores and his Dad started to boil a kettle of water to make Keemun tea, Jaune's favourite. Soon enough Jaune was staring into the flames as they danced merrily, taking a sip from the tasty beverage. He was now convinced there was a reason they were in the valley, wonderful as it was, for a reason other than the great view. He simply had to ask his Father the question as innocently as possible.

"So…Hunter training? Given it any more thought?" His father asked softly. Jaune sighed. All thoughts of the valley were pushed from his mind as the age old gnawing issue was brought up. He wondered if his Father had pushed Gwen to question him earlier, or vice versa.

 _'And the day was going so perfectly'_

"The answer is still the same, I don't know"

"If I could Jaune, I would leave it for as long as you want, you know I would. But time is something a hunter rarely has, even when you're deciding if you even want to become one."

Jaune looked down in to the fire again, mind working furiously. The question wasn't wherever he wanted to become a hunter, but why didn't he? He imagined it was every boy and girls dream, Hunters, he could admit, were _really_ cool. And he had some of the best hunters in the business to train him. But...he didn't want to be tied down into that training, he was eight for dusts sake. By the time he graduated, his childhood would be gone and there would be little chance to train for another profession. He would be expected to fight. But if he didn't decide soon, then the opportunity would be lost. He could see it in his minds eye now. Suddenly deciding he wanted to be a hunter, but years from now. What would the disappointment be like then? Soul crushing no doubt. He could see it now, desperate to be like his twin sister, faking his way in to Hunter school or some such, Embarrassing himself and his family. Them looking at him in pity. The horror at the thought was nearly enough to make him say yes right then.

And yet, he still couldn't say if he did or didn't want to become a hunter. He supposed, truly, it was self doubt, that if he truly had it in him to live up to the Arc name, that legend. He wasn't as agile as Gwen, smart as Gladys or even as fast as Gabrielle. He didn't know if he was brave enough to stand strong in the face of the Grim horror.

In the end, he decided to stick to the status quo and kick it in to the long grass. Guess that answered his own question, of being a coward.

 _'That's a depressing thought.'_

"I mean, I still have a year before we have to train right? What's the hurry?" Jaune asked as he prodded the fire with a stick, hard enough to snap it. He threw the rest of the broken wood in.

His Father sighed, sensing his Son's conflict. "Your mother and I have decided to bring yours and Gwen's training forward. We'll be starting next week." Shock filled Jaune.

"What!? Why?"

"Why, does not matter Jaune, but it's for your own good, as well as Gwens. It's already been decided." His father replied, face suddenly made of stone, eyes and voice hard and sharp, brooking no argument.

Jaune looked up at his dad sullenly. His mother, while loving, was the one to enforce discipline in the Arc family through how downright scary she could get when angry. His father meanwhile was always ready with a smile and helping hand. To be like this...was something happening? After all, what reason was there to bring their training forward? Or was there some other reason?

 _'When did_ _life_ _get so complicated?'_

Jaune didn't know wherever or not to feel angry at his parents for forcing him to make a decision so suddenly. In the end he just felt resigned. Feeling a hand on his shoulder he looked up startled at his Father, the serious expression gone from his face to be replaced with a sad smile as he sat next to his son.

"Jaune, don't feel any pressure to be a hunter simply because your sisters want to be one or because your mother and I are, it's your life, not ours. Whatever you choose to be, if it's to be a Hunter, or musician or even some dust dammed street juggler, your mother and I will always be proud of and support you. No. Matter. What."

Jaune sighed and looked up at his Father, forcing a smile.

"Do I have to decide right now?"

"No, you don't, but I'll need an answer by tomorrow night at the latest." Looking at his watch, Jaune's father usual smile came back and he walked back around to his side of the campsite to retrieve a something from his backpack.

"That said" he passed the confused Jaune the package "Happy Birthday son."

"But it's not my- oh yeah, it's tomorrow, why are you giving me this now"? Jaune questioned. His Father showed him his watch.

"Three minuets past twelve, its now the eleventh of June"

Jaune was shocked, he didn't even realise that it was that late, and well, that it was his Birthday! And Gwens too for that matter. He'd completely forgot. He looked down at the long thin package in his hands. It was wrapped in ordinary brown paper, but felt hard and slightly heavy in his hands. Exited, he tore off the packaging to reveal the dark brown of a leather. Ripping off the rest of the wrapping revealed it to be a sheathe, topped off with a handle wrapped in a dark blue leather with a flat gold pommel. A dagger. He stared at it with wide eyes. He slowly took the handle and drew the blade.

It slid from the sheathe with an oddly satisfying metallic sound, the dagger was curved and surprisingly long. The blade itself was wide, especially at the end and the metal had strange ripple designs in it. And at the bottom of the bright silver blade, was the Arc family symbol, etched prominently and proudly above the guard. It was beautiful. More beautiful than even the Arc family sword, Crocea Mors, which was hard to admit, as he had long admired the ancestral blade and shield of the Arc family, which even now hung over the mantle place at home. Then again, he supposed that both blades were beautiful for different reasons.

He told his Dad as much who smiled at his sons favourable reaction.

"I forged it over the last few weeks, made it from Vacou dawn steel. It's light, strong and will stay sharp for far longer than any ordinary metal. It will even glow brightly in the dark if you push Aura into it." Despite how impressed Jaune was, he narrowed his eyes at the mention of Aura, which his Father noticed.

"I'm not trying to influence your decision in any way" His father defended holding up a hand. "But our world is a dangerous place Jaune, having something to defend yourself and those precious to you is a must. And it is useful in many situations besides that such as clearing away undergrowth or as a hunting knife. It is a versatile tool, not a dedicated weapon of battle" Jaune looked down shamefaced that he had so quickly suspected his Father of such an underhanded trick. He quickly got up to give his Father a hug.

"Thanks Dad" Jaune mumbled into the Elder Arcs shoulder.

"No problem son"

The tender Father son bonding moment was broken by a high pitched war cry as a blonde haired blur smashed into the two males, which would have knocked over Jaune if it wasn't for his Father having his arms wrapped around him and the fact that their apparent attacker had her arms wrapped around them as well.

"But I want a hug as well!"

"Gillian, why are you outside of the house at such a time?" Their Father questioned as he untangled himself from his Daughters iron hug, which had he and his Son trapped.

"I wanted to give Jaune his present with you" She replied brightly, with an equally dazzling smile.

"And how did you know I was giving Jaune his present now? Or know where we were going for that matter?" Gillian blushed and mumbled something.

"I'm sorry, I didn't hear you"

"Gladys told us you were going camping to the falls this morning with Jaune, we thought it was sweet!" She objected as if she thought that was sufficient reason. Dad sighed.

"And your mother?"

"I left her a letter, it's not like I can't take care of myself, I know this valley even better than you do Daddy!" Their Father sighed and shook his head.

"But your mother doesn't know that you even made it here safely she must be worried sick if she isn't out looking for you already." Maric admonished firmly "I'm going to have t-what are you doing?"

Jaune looked at his sister and saw her cutely pouting, eyes watering, bottom lip slightly stuck out and quivering, face twisted with heart wrenching sorrow. It was the Arc daughters feared puppy face. Maric looked immediately guilty, Jaune rolled his eyes and went back to his seat to observe the predictable result. His father had long had a venerability to the tactic, Jaune was immune, though that was due to growing up with eight sisters, his heart was of Iron. Or so he liked to tell himself.

In the end it all ended the same way. Gillian let out a few tears, saying how sorry she was and begging to stay, and Maric immediately went into doting father mode to comfort her and promised to make an excuse to Fiona somehow. In the end she was sitting on her fathers knee, humming a happy tune and was allowed to stay. Still, despite the morally dubious tactic, she was probably the best of the girls, Jaune thought. She wouldn't want her Dad to get into any real trouble with their mother because of something she had done and would take responsibility for her actions when they got back, she only really wanted to stay the night. What was that saying the twins had told him before they tried to break into their fathers workshop?

 _'Sometimes it's easier to ask forgiveness than get permission Jaune'_

He remembered, their attempt to sneak in was a lot less successful than Gladys previous accomplishment. As in, falling into the first childproof trap their father had set. Obviously he had learnt his lesson. The twins certainly did when they were turned over to their mother's loving punishm-care.

"Oh! Before I forget, Jaune, your present." Gillian exclaimed, hoping off her Fathers lap and taking off a strap that kept a package tied to her back, something he had not noticed. She handed him the package, which he now saw was shaped quite strangely, like a triangle with a thin rectangle stretching out of it. Jaune hesitantly took the package and started to peel the wrapping away, to reveal an orange coloured wood. He tore the rest of the wrapping off to reveal a bizarre contraption, on oddly shaped device made of black acacia wood, roughly in the shape of a triangle, with a bent rectangle sticking out partly. Jane started at it, confused. It wasn't ugly per se, but it was still just a pretty piece of wood.

"Er, thanks..." Jaune said, with a bemused half smile. Gillian giggled.

"I told you he wouldn't get it Daddy!" Her father gave her eye roll.

"Of course he wouldn't, it's just a slab of wood at the moment. Show your brother." Gillian took the strange present from his hands.

"Watch" She said simply. She turned it over so it was lying on its back and then pulled a catch that Jaune had not noticed. In motions quicker than he could follow, the various panels of wood deployed, the rectangle shot forward, the faces of the triangle deployed outwards like a blooming flower to show more wood inside which themselves deployed outwards. A small panel with six strings attached shot up the rectangle to seat themselves at the top. Realization filled Jaune as the last panel set itself. A guitar. A very beautiful guitar, the many panels gave it an angular look while keeping the necessary circular shape. The body was a dark stripy orange, black acacia as he had identified before, whilst the neck was a type of black wood he couldn't identify. And despite how pretty it looked, he could only think of one thing.

"...you made a mecha-guitair" Jaune stated with a deadpan expression.

"You don't have to say it like that." She said, looking at him with a cute pout.

"...You made a _mecha-_ _guitar_ _"_ Gillian now looked at him with a bit of worry.

"Don't you like it?"

"Are you kidding? I love it!" Jaune exclaimed with a happy expression. He took the guitar from her hands and strummed the strings, he frowned when they all sounded completely out of tune.

"Because the strings uncoil when it transforms, you'll have to tune it every time it deploys. But you should only have to do that when you're travelling with it or pack it away." Gillian explained. Jaune had already started to tune it, strumming a couple of tunes as he worked with a smile on his face. It really was a beautiful guitar, it was a bit big, but he had growing to do still, so he supposed that it was a good thing. A thought occurred to Jaune.

"Did you make this yourself?"

"No, Daddy did most of the work, I just helped" Gillian replied, looking down. Maric snorted.

"Don't listen to your sister Jaune. She chose everything, made a design, and insisted on being there when I worked on it. I only had to modify the casing a little to enable to fit all the mechanics inside."

Gillian blushed at the praise and Jaune gave her his best smile to show her how much he loved her gift and the effort she had put in to it. Her blush intensified. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper.

"And this is my present for my birthday in August." Jaune raised an eyebrow at her, confused. He looked down at the paper. It was a song, for a guitar, written in Gillian's tidy script. Jaune studied it in more detail. It was quite complicated, more so than anything he had learned yet.

"I'd love it if you could play it for me at my Birthday Jaune." Said boy looked up to her with a smile. Gillian really was the kindest of them all. Always the one to first offer a hug of comfort or offer to help. And all she wanted for her birthday was a song, played by her little brother. There wasn't a bad bone in her body. Jaune actually felt himself tearing up a bit, though he ruthlessly blinked away the tears in his eyes and hid his face by burying it in his sisters shoulder as he gave her a hug. He was a big boy now dammit! He wouldn't cry over something like this.

"Thanks sis, I'd love to play it for you." He felt her head turn against his own as she tried to get a look at his face and he knew she had seen the tears. He panicked a little, his sister, kind as she was, would never let him hear the end of it, blubbering up over a present.

"Well, if this is your present then I guess I won't be getting you those mink fur trimmed hiking boots I asked dad to order." Jaune have his father a look and subtle wink "Dad would you…?" His Father got the message with a small smile. Jaune let himself feel a small amount of pride at his quick thinking.

"Sure, I'll contact the clothes store and tell them we don't need them any more."

As they talked Gillian's eyes widened in horror as she realised what her nice deed had gotten her.

"NO!" She shouted, birds squawking as their sleep was interrupted. "I can have those too. Pleeeeeease let me have them." She begged her Dad. She heard a giggle and laugh behind her from Jaune and she fixed the two Arc males with a glare when she realised she had been had.

"So, no fur walking boots?" She asked, slightly despondent.

"No, but thank you for the idea Son." Their Dad replied with a grin.

Gillian looked torn between being angry with them over their cruel joke and happy because she was getting the boots because of it. In the end she just sat down with a huff and unpacked the gear she had herself brought.

"Now, to bed you two, you have an early start and long day tomorrow and it's already late." Jaune and Gillian climbed into the tent and into their sleeping bags. Jaune collapsed the guitar and placed it by his bed. Their Father got to work cleaning up the camp outside. Jaune snuggled into the warmth of his sleeping bag. Before sleep could take him however. A sudden thought occurred to him.

 _'Monty in heaven, I forgot to get Gwen a present'_

He lay his head on his pillow with a sigh. Tomorrow would be awful, his Sister would never let him hear the end of it.

Jaune didn't know how right he was. His Birthday tomorrow, would be the worst day of his life. It would define and change him. And be the start of a journey that would change the face of Remnant forever.

* * *

A hand roughly shook Jaune and he shot awake with a gasp, panicking. Before he could register what was happening, he saw it was his Dad who had a woken him up. Jaune glanced at the gap in the tent entrance and saw it was still dark out, pitch black. He shot his dad an incredulous look but stopped when he saw the expression on the Elder Arc's face.

"Pack your things, we need to get home. Now!" Jaune looked wide eyed at his Father. He had only seen that look once before, when he had come back from a village near the vale, answering a call of assistance, only to find he was too late. Everyone massacred by Grimm. Least to say he didn't argue and scrambled to pack his sleeping bag and camping equipment as his Father woke up his Sister, who likewise responded quickly, eyes as wide as Jaune's own.

Jaune stepped outside to collect his stuff from the rest of the camp, the fire had long since died down but the logs and sticks still glowed with smouldering embers. A light in the darkness drew his gaze, and looking over he gasped at the bright flickering orange glow on the horizon. It looked like a fire. And it was right where the Arc mansion was.

 _'But that's impossible, home is seven miles away, to see it from here…'_

Horror filled Jaune. The entire mansion must be ablaze. That's when he heard it. And saw it. The white flashes and bangs. The thump of explosions, and the distant roar of an engine, that Jaune recognized as a bullhead, from the vids he had watched. This wasn't just a fire. This was an attack.

Someone was trying to kill his family.

* * *

 **That's it for this chapter, we'll be jumping right into the action in the next one as we discover who these mysterious attackers are and what they want. Are they raiders? Grimm? Particularly aggressive girl scouts trying to sell cookies with extreme prejudice? We'll see in the next chapter.**

 **Also, to make it easier on people who may be wondering, here are the ages of the Arc children.**

 **Jaune and Gwen – 8**

 **Gillian – 9**

 **Guinevere and Ginny – 10**

 **Gladys – 12**

 **Grace – 13**

 **Gabrielle – 14**

 **Gloria – 15**

 **Some people may argue the ages are too near each other but I wanted the Arc children to be a close bunch, so having the ages set far apart would be impractical for that purpose, after all, and I speak from experience, a sibling that is twenty years older than their youngest sibling, feels little connection to them beyond regular love for family. I also need it so that Marc and Fiona are still a relatively young couple, for story purposes.**

 **I shall also start an 'Encyclopedia Remnantia', as I'm going to call it, at the end of each chapter, with one or two entries. This should cut down on filling chapters with back story.**

 **On another note, my future chapters, while long will not be as long as this one, this was simply a very large one to fit most of the prologue in.**

 **Thank you to all who read this, and please leave a review, tell me what you think. Depending on the response, if people like it or it gets read and reviewed, I may or may not continue this.**


End file.
